


So I Surrender

by AttacknoFiction



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Chapter 93 Spoilers, Child Soldiers, F/F, Friends to Enemies, Gen, Manga Spoilers, Moral Ambiguity, Past Character Death, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-25
Updated: 2017-05-25
Packaged: 2018-11-04 20:08:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10998081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AttacknoFiction/pseuds/AttacknoFiction
Summary: Reiner meets his former friends again on the battlefield.Reiner almost wants to laugh. He doesn't know how to explain to this child that he can't bring himself to care about duty or pride anymore. He'd renounce his duty and give up every last bit of his pride in a heartbeat if he knew it would bring back Marcel, Bertholdt or Annie. He's ready to do that for Gabi. He envies her conviction, envies that she thinks she knows what's right and what's wrong, what's disgraceful and what's honorable, that she knows who she is and what she wants. He has forgotten how it feels. Half a warrior, half a soldier, he's never been complete.





	So I Surrender

**Author's Note:**

> Manga spoilers up to the last chapter.

Fighting is hopeless. The enemy is significantly stronger. Reiner knows that, he wants to give up, he wants to end it, but he can't. Their troops are beaten, most of the soldiers dead, captured or running away. He's the only Marley titan still standing, while Paradis has two of them in one person. Armin is there too, already out of his titan – _Bertholdt's titan_ \- but he had managed to annihilate a big part of Marley troops. 

Zophia... She was with the unit crushed under the boulder the Colossal sent flying. Reiner can't see Udo anywhere, but his unit was fighting with the mindless titans, controlled by Eren, so it's not hard to guess what happened. They had no experience battling titans. Titans had never turned against them before. They couldn't have guessed the islanders now have the ability to turn people into titans. 

But Gabi and Falco are alive, among the few still fighting alongside Reiner. He's trying not to let them out of his sight. He has to protect them whatever it takes. 

He's managed to avoid battling Eren up to now. Or maybe it's Eren avoiding him. He's their most prized asset and the Ackermans are guarding him like faithful dogs. But it's time now. He has no choice. He has to try to take down the Coordinate. 

Reiner accelerates his pace, running towards Eren, but five mindless titans throw themselves at him. He takes out the two smaller ones in less than a minute. The bigger ones are more of an obstacle. They can't penetrate his armor, though, so he keeps hitting and biting blindly until the 15-meter class is killed. 

In his peripheral vision he sees Gabi charging forward to Eren. He's not the only one who sees it. At least five Survey Corps members fly down to meet her. 

"No!" Reiner shouts inside his titan. 

He tears off the neck of one of the mindless and runs to Gabi, but Falco is quicker. He pushes her away and the sword intended for Gabi pierces his heart instead. 

"No!" Reiner cries again. He didn't see who it was, maybe Jean, maybe Sasha, maybe someone he doesn't know. He just sees Falco, lying there, his chest painted crimson, his eyes half-closed. Dead. Dead, trying to protect his friend. _Just like Marcel._

"Please," Reiner wants to say, "They're just kids." But nothing except a roar comes out of his mouth. 

There's no time to grieve. Gabi, brave, stupid Gabi, is still running to Eren, crying and screaming in helpless rage. Reiner sweeps away whoever is trying to attack her. Levi himself is among them and by some miracle Reiner manages to injure him and hide Gabi under his palm. 

_We have to run,_ he realizes. To hell with Eren, to hell with the Coordinate, to hell with Marley, Paradis and the war. It doesn't matter. Nothing matters except saving Gabi, giving her a chance to live a good life, keeping her away from this hell. 

As he moves to take Gabi in his hand, Mikasa comes flying down on him with the explosive spears they used to pull him out of his titan last time. He's barely able to snatch his hand away from Gabi before it's blown off. He ducks when Mikasa flies to his head, but she manages to destroy his shoulder and knock him down. 

"Reiner!" Gabi screams, aiming her rifle at Mikasa and shooting. 

She misses, but her attempt pisses off Eren, who grabs her with his huge palm. Reiner gets up to his feet and charges at him. Three mindless titans attack him and knock him down again. Gabi is twisting in pain, hitting Eren with powerless fists, and Reiner can't help her, can't save her. He's going to fail. He's going to fail again and get people killed. 

"Eren!" He hears a voice, "Wait!" 

It's Armin. He's standing on Eren's shoulder, his look determined. Gabi's stopped twisting, but she keeps trying to punch Eren. 

"Reiner," Armin says, "Surrender and she'll live." 

The mindless titans are not fighting Reiner anymore and are just standing there docilely. No one seems to be moving. Even Gabi just stares at Armin, dumbfounded. 

"Get out of your titan, Reiner, and we'll spare this girl," Armin continues, "Your life for hers, what do you say?" 

Reiner looks from Gabi to Armin. His armor creaks. How can he trust them? How can he know they won't kill Gabi as soon as he surrenders? 

As though reading his mind, Armin says: "I'm sorry, I can't prove in any way that I'm telling the truth. But we're not monsters. We don't want any more bloodshed. No one else will die if you surrender. She'll live. I give you my word." 

There's no other way. Reiner has to trust Armin's word. _Surrender and she'll live._ The threat is clear: if you don't, she'll die. 

Reiner feels nothing as he gets out of his titan. He's so exhausted that he doesn't know where he finds the strength to make those few steps to his former friends. Not that he needs to worry about walking. As soon as he's close enough to them, Mikasa descends on him like lightning. 

There's nothing but blinding pain for a few seconds and he really thinks that they've decided to kill him right there. It's probably better than to be fed to a titan. 

But he's mistaken. When Mikasa's done with him, he's a limbless mess writhing on the ground until Mikasa thrusts her sword into his shoulder. 

"Was that really necessary?" He hears Jean's voice through his moans of pain, "He surrendered." 

"Have you forgotten who we're dealing with?" Mikasa says, "We can't trust him. Armin told us what they'd done to Marco, didn't he?" 

Jean doesn't answer that. He helps Mikasa take Reiner to the carriage and tie his torso and head to the boards, so he can't even move an inch. His wounds are already steaming, but he knows they will take hours to heal. 

When the haze of pain clears a little bit, he sees Gabi. She's in another carriage, her hands and feet are tied up and she's sobbing. Loudly, messily, like a child. 

Reiner looks around. Mikasa has thankfully gone to fuss over Eren. Armin is with them too, they seem to be arguing and keep glancing at him. Jean and Connie are standing next to his carriage with a few other kids Reiner doesn't know. 

"Connie," He says hoarsely. 

Connie jolts up, but doesn't look at him. 

"Connie, let Gabi come here," Reiner asks. 

His former friend is still refusing to look at him. 

"She's scared," Reiner says, "She's just a kid." 

Connie and Jean exchange glances. Jean approaches Gabi's carriage and brings the struggling girl to Reiner. 

"Squad leader..." One of the new faces says. 

Jean gives her a look that seems to shut her up and puts Gabi next to Reiner. 

"Thank you," Reiner says. 

He tries to move closer to Gabi, but the restraints don't allow him. 

"Gabi, don't cry," he says, "It'll be fine." 

The girl looks at him furiously. "Why did you do it?" She hisses, "Why did you surrender to these devils? We have a duty as warriors. We have to fight them till the end. Surrendering is treason. I'd rather die proudly than live in disgrace." 

Reiner almost wants to laugh. He doesn't know how to explain to this child that he can't bring himself to care about duty or pride anymore. He'd renounce his duty and give up every last bit of his pride in a heartbeat if he knew it would bring back Marcel, Bertholdt or Annie. He's ready to do that for Gabi. He envies her conviction, envies that she thinks she knows what's right and what's wrong, what's disgraceful and what's honorable, that she knows who she is and what she wants. He has forgotten how it feels. Half a warrior, half a soldier, he's never been complete. 

"They're going to kill us anyway," Gabi continues, "You could have taken out a few of them." 

"They won't kill you, Gabi," Reiner says. 

"Do you believe them?" Gabi says, "They're lying monsters. Just look at what that woman did to you." Her eyes fill with tears again. 

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine," Reiner says, "Just try to be smart, alright?" 

Gabi seems to consider it. "Fine," she says, determined. 

The carriage starts moving. There are at least a dozen people accompanying it, as if Reiner could do anything in this state. Connie and Sasha are among them, they keep talking in low voices. Sasha glances at Reiner occasionally, but Connie stubbornly keeps his look away. Jean has moved forward after making sure Reiner is securely bound. Eren and Mikasa don't come near, though Armin shows up a couple of times to check on them. 

"Hey, Connie," Reiner says, suddenly desperate for conversation, "So when is it going to happen?" 

Sasha answers instead of him. "There's going to be a meeting to decide who should be given the power of the Armored titan as soon as we reach the camp," she says grimly, "Besides, the Queen probably wants to see you." 

"The Queen?" Reiner says. 

Sasha doesn't deign to answer this time. 

They reach the camp in a couple of hours. Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Levi and Hange enter one of the biggest tents. Connie goes to the central tent and comes out a few minutes later with Krista by his side. 

Reiner's heart skips a bit. Krista is more beautiful than before, more regal, more refined. Despite everything, she still has the power to turn everyone into blind admirers. 

"Krista," Reiner whispers when she approaches the carriage, "You're the Queen." 

"My name is Historia," she says, "Didn't think I'd see you again, Reiner." 

"Historia," Reiner says, "I hoped I would." 

"I want to ask you something," Historia says, "About Ymir." 

"I'm sorry, but she's..." 

"I know she's dead. I read the letter. I just want to know why. Why did she do it? Why did she abandon me?" 

"She did it because she was a good person," Reiner says, "And because she cared about you. She wanted you to live, so she made me promise to protect you." 

Historia's eyes shine with unshed tears. "So she did it for me?" She whispers. 

"For herself," Reiner says, "And for you." 

"And you let her?" Historia says harshly, "You lured her to your side with your fake promises. Lied to her just like you lied to everyone." 

"It wasn't a fake promise," Reiner cries, "I was ready to keep it. I would have kept it if the battle had gone differently today." 

"Why should I believe you?" Historia says. 

"I don't know," Reiner answers, "But Ymir did." 

Historia looks away and takes a few deep breaths. Then she nods at Reiner and turns to go. 

Reiner glances at Gabi. Her look is glassy, seems like she's not paying attention to what's happening around her. 

"Historia!" Reiner calls. 

She turns back. The soldiers around the carriage tense, but Reiner doesn't care about them. 

"I made a promise to Ymir that I'd protect you," he says, "I need you to make the same promise to me." 

"I can't spare your life," Historia says. 

"I'm not asking that. I want you to promise you'll protect her." They both look at Gabi. "Please," Reiner says, "She's just a kid. She doesn't know any better. Promise me she'll live." 

Historia stares at him for a moment with a strange look on her face. Reiner doesn't know if it's pity or disgust. 

"I promise," she says. 

Reiner lets out a breath. "Thank you." 

Historia looks down at Gabi. "What's your name?" She asks with a slight smile. 

"Gabi, Your Majesty," Gabi answers so sweetly that Reiner's eyebrows raise to his hairline. 

"How do you feel, Gabi?" Historia asks, "Do you need anything?" 

"I'm fine, thank you, Your Majesty," Gabi continues with the same meekness, "These ropes are chafing, but it's fine." 

"You know what, let's take them off," Historia says, "Someone give me a knife." 

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Gabi says smiling, as Historia cuts off the ropes binding her feet. 

Something is horribly wrong, Reiner can feel it. 

"Gabi?" He says softly. 

The girl turns to him with a sad smile. "Thank you, Reiner," she says. 

Historia removes the ropes around her wrists, and Reiner barely has the time to scream "no", when Gabi grabs the knife and lunges at the Queen. 

It happens too quickly. Reiner just sees the knife in Gabi's hand, Historia's blood and Jean's sword, cutting Gabi in half. 

For a moment there's absolute silence, then Reiner realizes that he's screaming and thrashing, biting his lips, cheeks, tongue, trying to transform, to crush all these monsters, these devils who killed a little girl. 

Historia is sitting on the ground, clutching her side, tears streaming down her eyes. Jean is standing next to her, a horrified expression on his face, his bloodied sword still in his hand. 

Was this his payback for Marco? Was this destiny's payback for Marco? Reiner doesn't know, he doesn't care. Gabi's mutilated body is right in front of his eyes and he trashes and trashes in his restraints. 

"What-what happened?" 

It's Eren. He and the others have somehow appeared there. Mikasa and Levi have their swords out and pointed at Reiner. He spots Armin's blond head behind Eren. 

"Armin!" Reiner shouts, "You promised." 

Armin opens his mouth and closes it. 

"You promised me she'd live, you bastard," Reiner yells. 

"I'm sorry," Armin says quietly. 

"She was going to kill Historia," Jean speaks. His voice is shaking. "I didn't want to kill her. I didn't..." 

The rest is drowned in screams, as Reiner transforms. It's only a partial transformation - a skeleton and half an arm, but it's enough to blow the closest standing people away and to free Reiner from the bindings. His hands and feet aren't completely recovered, though, and he crawls away from the skeleton to reach Gabi, to take the knife, to kill... 

"Reiner, calm down," Eren cries. 

"Everyone, stand back!" Hange commands, "We have to do it now." 

Reiner sees the syringe in her hand. He doesn't see who she injects, but suddenly there's a titan behind him. Eren raises a trembling arm and the titan grabs Reiner and brings him to his mouth. Reiner looks down. Historia is being carried away by two soldiers. Jean is on his knees, his head bowed. Mikasa looks grim. Armin has turned away. Connie and Sasha are crying. Gabi's body is still lying there, alone, abandoned. 

_I'm sorry, Gabi, I failed you. I failed everyone. Neither a warrior, nor a soldier, I've been nothing but a failure._

"Wait!" He screams, as the titan's mouth closes around him. _Marcel, Bertholdt, Annie._ "Wait for me..."

**Author's Note:**

> I know Eren can't use the Coordinate without royal blood and yadda yadda, but let's pretend he's found a way.


End file.
